Weiss Schnee (thislifeismine) wrote in valarlogs, @ 2017-08-10 13:45:00 |
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Entry tags: | !complete, gamora, weiss schnee |
WHO: Weiss Schnee & Gamora
WHAT: Going to a burlesque~
WHEN: This evening
WHERE: Some burlesque place?
RATINGS/WARNINGS: It's pretty low minus the mention of boobs and Weiss/Gamora's messed up family shenanigans
STATUS: Complete when posted
This was a night of firsts for Gamora as well - she had never been to a burlesque club, never taken in a show there, never had a chance to drink potent cocktails while watching scantily clad women (though men doing the same thing was common too, what was it called? Boylesque?) performing ‘tight’ choreography and those infamous eye-popping moves. The peep shows were just insanely fun, themed in everything from pop culture like Pennywise the Clown (no thank you) to Donald Trump (also no thank you) to female Mexican wrestlers combined with dance, aerial acrobatics, and hula hoops to perform tales of good vs. evil for an eager audience. That was a little bit better.
The place Gamora had chosen, on recommendation, was a former industrial factory - it was huge, and the building still had that vintage feel to it. Between sets, a DJ spun some tunes and the kittens or whatever they were called tidied up the stage - it was essential to clean the glitter and pasties and leftover feathers before the next performance started, she assumed. So, perfect opportunity to head to the bar for a drink.
“What would you like?” she asked her ice-blonde companion, whom Gamora hoped was having a good time. And with her glamour on, an enchanted necklace, her red-streaked hair pulled up into a ponytail and a black sequined one-shoulder club dress that left little to the imagination (though she still managed to find someplace to stash a gun - it was a skill of hers), the alien looked downright normal. “I will get us a round. Probably something to eat as well.” Had to have snacks to sop up the booze - safer that way.
Weiss herself wasn’t sure how to take the scantily clad women. She wasn’t exactly the sort of person that spent a lot of time with them, but it also wasn’t the first time. With the company came a lot of invites to places where their jewels were used. Most notably, the fashion shows. So she didn’t react more than just a raised eyebrow or a careful aversion of the eyes. It was a different sort of performance than she was used to all the same. She wasn’t sure what Winter would say about it, but perhaps it was an exercise in attempting to make a friend (something she was very much not used to or sure how to do, but Winter always said she needed to make friends).
The drinks, though...Those Weiss was skeptical of. She’d never exactly been the sort to drink alcohol. She was a coffee addict. She’d heard of coffee-flavored alcohol, but she hadn’t really found an excuse to try it. There were always some person or another drunk at one of her parents’ parties and it never seemed anything short of embarrassing. She just hoped that one drink wouldn’t be too bad. “Um.” She stared at the bar and the menu uncertainly. “I don’t know.”
As it was most days, Weiss’ hair was up in a ponytail at the back of the right side of her head. Her dress was strapless and a light blue color that was fitted on the top and flared out at the waist, hitting around the mid-thigh. It was similar in style to the things she wore in the dreams, but without the color gradient she seemed fond of.
“How about something with Kahlúa?” Gamora asked - she too liked coffee liquor, and besides, this was a good way to combine both coffee and booze. So she ordered them both Mexican coffee - it was coffee liqueur, horchata creme liqueur, and then actual coffee. Something to sip on, not just shots they could knock back and that was the end of it.
Oh, and an order of coq-n-balls. They were fried chicken cheese balls served with hot sauce. Could not go wrong there, at all.
Settling on the stool, she crossed her legs and swiveled to face Weiss. “That is a pretty dress,” Gamora complimented. “I’m guessing you don’t wear it out much though?”
Weiss nodded. It was probably better to let someone who seemed to know anything about alcohol to figure out the alcoholic beverages. Her parents served champagne and wine mostly. Not that she’d really gone out of her way to try any. It was good to have a level head and a clear mind when dealing with the people at her parents’ charity events. People didn’t talk to her all that much (she wasn’t her father, after all), but she didn’t want to be caught off guard either.
Weiss glanced down at her dress, shrugging slightly. “I have a lot of dresses that are the same style as this one, but I guess I don’t wear this one as much. It’s a little dressier than my everyday outfits.” And usually she wore something to cover her shoulders. “Winter says it’s suited to me, though. She got it for me...the last time she was home.” It felt strange to talk about her sister with other people...mostly because it was always obvious that Winter was important to her. Of all her family, Winter was the only one that really cared. But she didn’t really have friends that she talked to about these things either...something she’d known, but didn’t really think about as much before the other night when Gamora had mentioned it.
“Yours is nice, too. I don’t think I could pull it off.”
Gamora felt a bit of sympathy for the girl - she obviously was sheltered, and not good with people (and that was something Gamora related to). Plus, it sounded like her family was dysfunctional - then again, who didn’t have a dysfunctional family these days? But still, if this Guardian of the Galaxy could provide a pleasant evening out - even if it was to see a risque show - then she’d consider that doing a good deed.
“I didn’t think I could pull it off either,” she quipped. “But then I changed that thought to, why not?” Their drinks arrived and she took hers, holding the cup in between her hands. “Winter is your...sister?” she guessed. “Older, younger? You’re close?”
Weiss spoke fondly of her. Or at least, without eye-rolling and disdain. So that was something.
“Fit and flare has always been my style. Even in the…” She trailed off, deciding to brave a sip of her drink in order to avoid her self-imposed ban of discussing her dreams with people. She knew it was probably unnecessary, but then she also didn’t think she could explain Beacon to anyone or the fact that she was finding herself reaching for a rapier that wasn’t there more often than she thought she would. She’d read about people getting weapons, though, so maybe hers would should up. She’d like to have Myrtenaster with her. Just in case. She didn’t want to have to rely on other people to save her from unfortunate situations when she could do it herself just fine...if she had her weapon and her semblance.
“Older. She’s...yes. We’re close.” Weiss studied the cup in her hands, still trying to decide how she felt about the drink. She’d probably still drink it anyway. “She’s in the military, so I don’t see her very often.” It was difficult, but Weiss knew her sister was happy doing what she did. She just wished she could do what she did and stay closer to home. “I have a younger brother, but he’s…” Her nose wrinkled slightly. “Whitley.”
For reasons Weiss had never come to understand, Whitley had never liked her or Winter. He liked the way their father did business and he didn’t think that the family honor needed to be restored because it was perfectly fine as it was...and yet...it wasn’t. People laughed at them, people stole from them, people threatened their lives. Those things would happen even if their business politics were better, but at least she could feel good about her family’s name then. She wouldn’t gain points with her business plans. At least not when it came to the people making the majority of the money now. She didn’t care. Most of them were idiots anyway...and most of them were her father’s lap dogs.
“But it’s not important.”
“Even in the dreams?” Gamora finished for her - at least, that’s what she thought Weiss was going to say. Of course she knew the girl had them. Gamora experienced them too. But talking about them sometimes was healthy, as she’d learned, and she would continue to do so - even if things were particularly shitty right now what with Ego suddenly making the switch to megalomaniac supervillain, and both Rocket and Gabe had moved away from Orange County, so it was just her and Peter.
And Yondo, but that didn’t count. Not in Gamora’s eyes.
“It might help if you do get things off your chest with them but I won’t force you,” she shrugged, sipping her drink. “I have always wanted a sister though. That must be nice. Kind of like a live-in friend.”
Weiss nodded at the question. Yes. Even in the dreams. Stupid dreams. She still didn’t understand how she’d ended up with Ruby as a partner and not Pyrrha. But the more time passed, the more she considered what she’d said. She still didn’t like Ruby, but if she was going to be stuck with her, then she...she didn’t know. She guessed it couldn’t hurt her to try to be nicer to her, but at the same time, she was still disappointed.
“Yeah, but what’s the point? It’s not going to change anything. It’s all still the same.” Not that she’d dreamt anything terrible. Maybe the Grimm were terrible, but she’d actually kind of liked the way she felt when they were fighting them. She wanted that back. Not that there were any Grimm here. That didn’t mean she didn’t want to fight to make things better. She sighed, taking another sip of her drink.
“I’m glad I have Winter. I don’t know what I’d do without her. Her and Klein are basically the only people worth talking to in my house.”
“We can’t change what we dream about, but they are not something we have to deal with on our own,” Gamora pointed out. “We can learn from them - like in mine, I look at myself and wonder how I couldn’t just admit there was something between me and Peter. My boyfriend now,” she clarified. “I want to shake myself for being so emotionally stunted. But it shows me that it wouldn’t be wise to make the same mistakes.”
She’d made a lot of them, sure. No one was perfect. But at the same time, Gamora also wanted to do the right thing. After years of oppression and being Thanos’ slave, it was nice to have a taste of freedom. Peter gave her that.
And here we go, fried food. A snack. She slid the plate between her and Weiss, because the blonde sounded like she could use some unhealthy indulgences. “What’s the deal with your family? You do...diamond stuff, right?”
Gamora thought she’d heard something about that. But it wasn’t like she had much use for precious gemstones in her life.
Had she learned from them? Weiss scrunched up her nose as she thought about it. She didn’t know if she should think about that. She didn’t know if it was worth thinking about. Maybe it was that she didn’t want to consider that she hadn’t learned anything. She supposed she had been more difficult on Ruby than he should have been, but she also didn’t know what to do with Ruby...or any of the others.
She looked at the food that showed up, almost as uncertain about the food as she had been the drink. She tried it anyway. It wasn’t really all that bad. A little spicy, but not bad. “Yes. We own the Schnee Diamond Company. I’m the heiress. Eventually I’ll take over the company. I have plans for it, but…” She shrugged slightly. “It’s not what my father would have planned.” It wasn’t the fault of the company. It wasn’t the company that was wrong. It was her father.
“Winter was the heiress, but she joined the military and she was cut off. So now it’s mine.” Unless something happened. Then it would become Whitley’s. She’d been careful not to be cut off herself. Whitley was the same as her father, so nothing would change. “It’s the same in the dreams. Only it’s the Schnee Dust Company. Dust is used to fight the Grimm. It’s very powerful. More useful than diamonds.” But that didn’t mean she took her company here any less seriously. Maybe there was a dream place where diamonds were useful for fighting, but they weren’t in hers. “I’m in school training to be a huntress. To fight the Grimm and protect people.”
Training to be a huntress was pretty interesting. “Sounds badass. I trained to be an assassin, myself,” Gamora shared, dipping one of those balls into the provided sauce. It was quite delicious and she was glad this place had decent pub grub. “Well, here I am a bodyguard. In my dreamworld I am currently...we call ourselves the Guardians of the Galaxy.”
Nothing like Grimm to be concerned about (what were those, anyway?) but aliens and cosmic entities and power-hungry fools. It seemed like something was always going on. And it was always personal. Like Ego, and the current clusterfuck that was dealing with Peter’s celestial father.
“What sort of plans do you have for the diamond company? Is taking over what you really want to do?”
“I think it is.” She was doing it against her father’s wishes, but she was doing it. “You’re an assassin?” That was...surprising. But considering the things that other people wrote about, maybe it wasn’t actually as surprising as it felt. But a bodyguard seemed a little less severe, not that she knew much about the job. There were a couple bodyguard or security people around the house sometimes. She preferred living in her apartment without one. “We call ourselves Hunters and Huntresses. I’m on Team RWBY, though.” Pronounced Ruby. “There’s also Team JNPR.” Pronounced Juniper. “I’d hoped Pyrrha would be my partner, but I got Ruby instead.”
She let out a sigh. “I want to make it better. The business ethics are…” She wrinkled her nose. “Well, they need work. The people doing most of the work get the least pay. It’s…” Complicated. She wanted to make things better, however. “My father has...a way of doing things and I have another.” It was just the way of things. “No. Not really, but the options are that I take over and get better things in place and then have someone I trust run things...or Whitley takes over and…” And nothing changed. “I would like to sing, but…” Some things just weren’t allowed.
Gamora nodded. She understood family obligations - and it was good of Weiss to care enough about the business, which had likely once been something else and then reshaped to not be so ethical (diamond mining wasn’t always ethical, she knew that much).
“There’s a lot of good you can do to turn it around, to make producing the diamonds conflict-free especially,” she said. “And sing on the side, perhaps? Until the company is in a place where it’s on a better course, and then anyone would encourage you to follow your dream.”
She said this seriously, a piece of advice sitting here in a glittery dress about to watch women shake their nipple tassels. But it was no less sincere. “You could even start singing now. He doesn’t have to know about it.”
Weiss’ family had been different. Yes, they’d had money and been important, but she’d heard stories about how things used to be. Her father hadn’t even been a Schnee. He took the name when he married her mother. He’d wanted the name and the prestige that came with it. Her mother didn’t really care much about anything, so it had worked out to have him own the business, only then he changed things.
“I’d like to. I will probably need someone to help me get things set in place, but it will take time before everything is worked out.” But she was ambitious and determined enough to get it done. She had been raised in a world where being competitive was a good thing and so she learned to be good at fencing, good at piano and singing, good at various other things her parents felt necessary. She wanted to believe anyone outside of Winter and Klein would support her following her dreams, but Weiss was realistic enough to know it wasn’t likely. Still, she put on a smile and nodded at Gamora’s words. Yes, of course they would encourage it.
“How will he be kept from discovering it?” Because she wasn’t sure of anything outside of going to places where no one who ever spoke to her father would ever go. Or wearing a disguise.
“Go by a different name,” Gamora suggested, fingertip idly tracing the rim of her glass as she considered. She thought about what she would have done if she’d had a passion she wanted to pursue without Thanos discovering - naturally, she didn’t (because she’d always been under the thumb of her successful shark of a father) and hiding something from him wasn’t easy. But it could be done. “Maybe give yourself a different look for performances - a wig, at least. It’ll set you apart from others and make you memorable. There are also websites that post audition dates and opportunities for singing gigs - find some in places where he or his associates wouldn’t frequent.”
Yes, that was all doable, wasn’t it? And she very much doubted that Weiss’ father paid attention to who was singing where. If at first glance Weiss wasn’t even recognizable, then it was likely he wouldn’t notice even if there were pictures of her singing in some coffee shop or theater.
“It’s all a risk but worth it. You have to do what makes you happy.”
A different name. Weiss wasn’t sure what name she’d go by. It would have to be something that she’d actually respond to. She’d never tried to be anything other than a Schnee. The concept was a little unsettling because being a Schnee was such a big part of her and so not being one...that was always...something. Not that there was a lot of options open to her if she didn’t want her father to know. She just wished he was the sort of man that was happy for it, that saw it as being distinctive or something he was happy to see.
A wig wouldn’t really be a problem. She knew a few places that might be able to help her with that...or maybe she could send Klein to get it for her. There was also online ordering. It was possible that she might need to ask Team RWBY for a little help. She may not know how to deal with them in general, but she could talk to Yang...and maybe Ruby. But if she was already involving two of three, she might as well involve all of them. Not that she thought Blake seemed like the sort of person that would be interested.
“I’ll consider it. I have a few people to talk to first.”
“Well, good luck with it. If I can help, let me know,” Gamora offered. It was the least she could do - and she knew a few things about disguising herself since, fake out, she didn’t actually look like this anymore. “You’d be pretty as a brunette.” Or a redhead. Weiss could pull it off.
But anyway, there were bouncing tits to appreciate now - they hadn’t come here to spend too much time talking about what a dick Weiss’ father was. “Let’s go, it looks like the next set is about to start,” she said as she grabbed her drink (and the fried balls) and slid off her stool. They could get a seat closer to the stage for optimal viewing pleasure.
Weiss tried to consider herself as a brunette. She wasn’t sure how she felt about it, but...well, she was sure there was something that she could manage. It would be different enough that her father wouldn’t give it a second glance. She had an idea for a fake surname, which was just the name of her weapon in the dreams. Myrtenaster. Past that, she had no ideas.
There was a quick nod before she stood up, eyeing the stage warily. She wasn’t sure if this was her kind of theater still, but she was going to experience it anyway. If she didn’t like it, she never had to come back. For now, though, she was trying something new and trying to reserve judgment until later.